Imaging apparatus and method of controlling the apparatus

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus capable of mounting multiple storages and transmitting and receiving data to and from the multiple storages. The imaging apparatus includes a first interface configured to receive detailed information necessary for the mounting and an instruction to mount a specific storage from the outside and a second interface configured to receive an instruction to mount an arbitrary storage with at least part of the detailed information necessary for the mounting being omitted from the outside.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus capable of savingdata in an external storage and a method of controlling the imagingapparatus.

BACKGROUND ART

Network storage systems have been practical use in recent years in whichhigh-capacity and highly functional storages are built on Internetprotocol (IP) networks. The network storage systems are made availableby mounting host devices. Various protocols to access network storagesare used to support the network storage systems. For example, theprotocols include Network File System (NFS), Server Message Block (SMB),Common Internet File System (CIFS), and Cloud Data Management Interface(CDMI). Ideas to access the various storages using the same protocolhave been disclosed (for example, refer to PTL 1).

In addition, in imaging apparatuses that transmit captured ages toclient devices, command groups from the client devices to instructchange of settings of the imaging apparatuses and start of delivery ofimages have hitherto been installed. A command group defined by astandard developed by Open Network Video Interface Forum (ONVIF) isknown as an example of the command groups in recent years.

Such a command group includes a command from the client device to causethe imaging apparatus to mount a storage. The command group alsoincludes a command from client device to cause data in the imagingapparatus to be output to the mounted storage. A SetStorageConfigurationcommand is defined as the former command. An ExportVideos command isdefined as the latter command. The mounting means that the storage orthe like is put into a writable or readable state.

Heretofore, it is necessary for users of the client devices to get a lotof information in advance and input the information in the mounting inorder to cause the host devices to mount external network storages fromthe client devices using the command groups described above. Forexample, it is necessary for the users of the client devices to inputinformation about protocols with which the host devices are capable ofperforming the mounting, local paths along which the host devices are toperform the mounting, network storages accessible from the host devices,etc. and, thus, the mounting of the external network storages isdisadvantageously complicated. In addition, persons other than managersof the host devices may not be capable of getting such information.Accordingly, there is a problem in that it may be difficult for generalusers who want to save the data from the host devices to the externalstorages using the above command groups to make the settings.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature

-   PTL 1: Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-241903

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

The present invention provides an imaging apparatus capable oftransmitting and receiving data to and from multiple storages mounted ona network. The imaging apparatus includes a first interface configuredto receive detailed information necessary for mounting the storages andan instruction to mount a specific storage and a second interfaceconfigured to receive an instruction to mount an arbitrary storage withat least part of the detailed information necessary for mounting thestorages being omitted.

Further features of the present invention will become apparent from thefollowing description of exemplary embodiments with reference to theattached drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary configuration of an imaging systemincluding a monitoring camera, which is an imaging apparatus, and aclient apparatus in first and second embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary internalconfiguration of the monitoring camera in the imaging system in thefirst and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2B is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary internalconfiguration of the client apparatus in the imaging system in the firstand second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary structure of parameters held by themonitoring camera in the first and second embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4A illustrates command arguments and parameters transmitted andreceived between the monitoring camera and the client apparatus indetail in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4B illustrates command arguments and parameters transmitted andreceived between the monitoring camera and the client apparatus indetail in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4C illustrates command arguments and parameters transmitted andreceived between the monitoring camera and the client apparatus indetail in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4D illustrates command arguments and parameters transmitted andreceived between the monitoring camera and the client apparatus indetail in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 4E illustrates command arguments and parameters transmitted andreceived between the monitoring camera and the client apparatus indetail in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates a command concerning the embodiments of the presentinvention and a response to the commands in detail.

FIG. 6 illustrates a command concerning the embodiments of the presentinvention and a response to the commands in detail.

FIG. 7 illustrates a command concerning the embodiments of the presentinvention and a response to the commands in detail.

FIG. 8 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence between themonitoring camera and the client apparatus in the first and secondembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence between themonitoring camera and the client apparatus in the first and secondembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence between themonitoring camera and the client apparatus in the first and secondembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process of themonitoring camera when the SetSC command has been received in the firstand second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process in themonitoring camera when the BackupSystem command, the ExportVideoscommand, or the Archive command has been received in the first andsecond embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary behavior of a controlunit in the monitoring camera in a storage selection step in the firstand second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 14A is a table illustrating exemplary information concerning anaccess mode type priority order held by the monitoring camera in thefirst and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 14B is a table illustrating exemplary information concerning theaccess mode type priority order held by the monitoring camera in thefirst and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary Storage Operation screen of the clientapparatus in the first and second embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary behavior of the clientapparatus concerning the Storage Operation screen in the first andsecond embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating the exemplary behavior of the clientapparatus concerning the Storage Operation screen in the first andsecond embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart illustrating the exemplary behavior of the clientapparatus concerning the Storage Operation screen in the first andsecond embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating the exemplary behavior of the clientapparatus concerning the Storage Operation screen in the first andsecond embodiments of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention will herein be described withreference to the attached drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary configuration of an imaging systemincluding a monitoring camera 1000, which is an imaging apparatus, and aclient apparatus 2000 in a first embodiment of the present invention.The client apparatus 2000 indicates an external device in theembodiments of the present invention. The monitoring camera 1000 and theclient apparatus 2000 are connected to each other via an Internetprotocol (IP) network 1500 so as to be capable of communicating witheach other.

Referring to FIG. 1, the imaging system includes a network attachedstorage 1100 connected to the IP network 1500. The network attachedstorage 1100 is hereinafter abbreviated to the NAS 1100. The NAS 1100includes an interface, such as CIFS, NFS, or SMB. The NAS 1100 isconnected in a state in which the monitoring camera 1000 is accessibleto the NAS 1100 that is mounted.

The imaging system also includes a cloud storage 1200 available via theInternet 1600, that is, a cloud. The cloud storage 1200 includes, forexample, CDMI. The cloud storage 1200 is connected in a state in whichthe monitoring camera 1000 is accessible to the cloud storage 1200 thatis mounted.

The client apparatus 2000 transmits various commands, such as a commandto change imaging parameters described below and a command to startvideo streaming, to the monitoring camera 1000. The monitoring camera1000 transmits responses to the commands and a video stream to theclient apparatus 2000.

FIG. 2A is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary internalconfiguration of the monitoring camera 1000.

Referring to FIG. 2A, the monitoring camera 1000 includes a control unit1001, a storage unit 1002, an imaging unit 1003, a compression encodingunit 1004, a communication unit 1005, an imaging control unit 1006, andan internal storage medium 1007. The control unit 1001 controls theentire monitoring camera 1000. The control unit 1001 is composed of, forexample, a central processing unit (CPU).

The storage unit 1002 is mainly used as storage areas of a variety ofdata. For example, the storage unit 1002 is used as a storage area ofprograms executed by the control unit 1001, a working area during theexecution of the programs, and a storage area of image data generated bythe imaging unit 1003.

The imaging unit 1003 converts an analog signal acquired by capturing animage of an object by an imaging optical system of the monitoring camera1000 into digital data and supplies the digital data to the storage unit1002 as a captured image. When the captured image is supplied to thestorage unit 1002, the control unit 1001 receives an image acquisitionevent from the imaging unit 1003.

The compression encoding unit 1004 performs compression and encoding tothe captured image output from the imaging unit 1003 in, for example, aJoint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) format or an H.264 format togenerate image data and supplies the image data to the storage unit1002.

The communication unit 1005 is used when the monitoring camera 1000receives each control command from the external device and when themonitoring camera 1000 transmits a response to each control command tothe external device. Upon reception of a command from the externaldevice, the control unit 1001 receives a command reception event fromthe communication unit 1005.

The imaging control unit 1006 is used to change an imaging range of theimaging unit 1003 to tilt drive, pan drive, or zoom drive in accordancewith the value of tilting, panning, or zooming, respectively, which issupplied from the control unit 1001.

The internal storage medium 1007 is a storage capable of being used bythe control unit 1001 to, for example, save data. The internal storagemedium 1007 is composed of a file system built on, for example, a SecureDigital (SD) memory card, a universal serial bus (USB) drive, or a harddisk drive.

FIG. 2B is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary internalconfiguration of the client apparatus 2000.

Referring to FIG. 2B, the client apparatus 2000 includes a control unit2001, a storage unit 2002, a display unit 2003, an input unit 2004, adecoding unit 2005, and a communication unit 2006. The control unit 2001is composed of, for example, a CPU and controls the entire clientapparatus 2000.

The storage unit 2002 is mainly used as storage areas of a variety ofdata. For example, the storage unit 2002 is used as a storage area ofprograms executed by the control unit 2001 and a working area during theexecution of the programs.

The display unit 2003 is composed of, for example, liquid crystaldisplay (LCD) or an organic electroluminescence (EL) display. Thedisplay unit 2003 displays, for example, various setup screens includinga delivery image setup screen, a viewer of videos received from themonitoring camera 1000, and various messages for a user of the clientapparatus 2000.

The input unit 2004 is composed of, for example, buttons, arrow keys, atouch panel, and/or a mouse. The input unit 2004 notifies the controlunit 2001 of the content of a user's screen operation.

The decoding unit 2005 decodes the compressed and encoded image datareceived via the communication unit 2006 in, for example, the JPEGformat or the H.264 format and decomposes the decoded image data in thestorage unit 2002.

The communication unit 2006 is used when the client apparatus 2000transmits each control command to the monitoring camera 1000 and whenthe client apparatus 2000 receives a response to each control commandand a video stream from the monitoring camera 1000.

Although the internal configurations of the monitoring camera 1000 andthe client apparatus 2000 are described with reference to FIG. 2A andFIG. 2B, respectively, the processing blocks illustrated in FIG. 2A andFIG. 2B only describe exemplary embodiments of the monitoring camera andthe client apparatus of the present invention and are not limited to theones illustrated in FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B. It will be clear that manychanges and modifications of the embodiments will be obvious to thoseskilled in the art without departing from the true spirit and scope ofthe invention. For example, an audio input unit, an audio output unit,and/or an image analysis processing unit may be provided.

The names and the content of commands and parameters used in the firstembodiment will now be described.

VideoSourceConfiguration may be abbreviated to VSC andVideoEncoderConfiguration may be abbreviated to VEC in the followingdescription.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary structure of parameters held by themonitoring camera 1000 in the first embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 3, Reference 3100 denotes MediaProfile held by themonitoring camera 1000. MediaProfile 3100 is a parameter set used tostore setting items necessary for video delivery of the monitoringcamera 1000 in the storage unit 1002 in association with each other.MediaProfile 3100 holds ProfileToken, which is an identifier (ID) ofMediaProfile 3100, and links to the various setting items including VSCand VEC. The monitoring camera 1000 may hold multiple sets ofMediaProfile.

Reference 3110 denotes VideoSource. VideoSource 3110 is a collection ofparameters indicating the performance of the imaging unit 1003 in themonitoring camera 1000. VideoSource 3110 includes VideoSourceToken,which is an ID of VideoSource 3110, and Resolution indicating theresolution of the image data which the imaging unit 1003 is capable ofoutputting.

Reference 3120 denotes VideoSourceConfiguration.VideoSourceConfiguration 3120 is a collection of parameters to associatethe VideoSource 3110 of the monitoring camera 1000 with the MediaProfile3100. Although VSC 3120 holds VideoSourceToken, which indicates an ID ofthe VideoSource 3110, and Bounds specifying a trimming size and atrimming position of the image output from the imaging unit 1003,VideoSourceToken and Bounds are not described in the example in FIG. 3.

Reference 3130 denotes VideoEncoderConfiguration.VideoEncoderConfiguration 3130 is a collection of parameters toassociate settings in the compression encoding unit 1004, which concernthe compression and encoding of the image data, with the MediaProfile3100. VEC 3130 includes Token, which is an ID of the VEC 3130, Typespecifying the compression and encoding method, and Resolutionspecifying the resolution of the output image. Although VEC 3130 mayfurther include Quality specifying the quality of the compression andencoding, FramerateLimit specifying a maximum frame rate of the outputimage, BitrateLimit specifying a maximum bit rate, and so on, Quality,FramerateLimit, BitrateLimit, and so on are not described in the examplein FIG. 3.

For example, with MediaProfile 3100 in FIG. 3, the monitoring camera1000 compresses and encodes the image data output on the basis of thecontent of VideoSource 3110 and VSC 3120 in accordance with theparameters of, for example, the compression and encoding method set inVEC 3130. The monitoring camera 1000 delivers the compressed and encodedimage data to the external device, such as the client apparatus 2000,via the communication unit 1005.

Reference 3140 denotes StorageConfiguration. StorageConfiguration ishereinafter abbreviated to SC. SC 3140 is a collection of parametersholding information used for accessing various storages which themonitoring camera 1000 is capable of using. SC 3140 will be described indetail below.

Reference 3150 denotes RecordingInformation. RecordingInformation 3150is a structure that holds information about Recording resulting fromabstraction of a recording file held in the imaging unit 1003 in themonitoring camera 1000. RecordingInformation 3150 holds RecordingTokenidentifying Recording. In other words, RecordingToken can be said to bethe recording file in the imaging unit 1003.

FIG. 4A to FIG. 4E illustrate command arguments and parameterstransmitted and received between the monitoring camera 1000 and theclient apparatus 2000 in detail.

FIG. 4A illustrates an example of the content of SC. SC includesDeviceEntity including StorageToken, which is the ID of SC. StorageTokenis information capable of uniquely identifying SC held by the monitoringcamera 1000. Sc also holds a StorageConfigurationData structure thatholds detailed information for accessing the storage. TheStorageConfigurationData structure will be described in detail below.

FIG. 4B illustrates an example of the content of theStorageConfigurationData structure.

Referring to FIG. 4B, LocalPath holds mounting destination informationwhen an external storage specified in SC is mounted in the monitoringcamera 1000. When the monitoring camera 1000 holds the file system,LocalPath may be a path, such as “/mnt/cifs1”, to the directory of themounting destination. Alternatively, LocalPath may be a drive name or adrive symbol, such as “E”, with which the mounted storage is capable ofbeing uniquely identified. When LocalPath is capable of being identifiedat the monitoring camera side, this information may be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 4B, StorageUri holds the address of the externalstorage mounted with SC. For example, an IP address or a UniformResource Identifier (URI) “//cifs_server/disk1/share/” specified by ahost name is used. When an SD card of the monitoring camera 1000 is tobe mounted, a path, such as “/dev/sdcard/1”, to a device file indicatingthe SD card drive is used. Other various URIs may be specified dependingon an access mode type “type” described below. When the address of theexternal storage to be mounted is capable of being identified at themonitoring camera side, this information may be omitted.

Referring to FIG. 4B, User holds authentication information thatincludes a user name and a password and that is used for accessing theexternal storage specified by StorageUri. User will be described indetail below. When the external storage that does not need theauthentication information is to be mounted, this information may beomitted.

Referring to FIG. 4B, type is information used to select the access modetype of the external storage. Information indicating the type of theexternal storage to be mounted with this SC, in a list of access modetypes described in “StorageType” described below with reference to FIG.4D, is held in type.

FIG. 4C illustrates an example of the content of a UserCredentialsstructure referred to as User in FIG. 4B.

Referring to FIG. 4C, Username holds a user name used for accessing theexternal storage specified by StorageUri.

Referring to FIG. 4C, Password holds a password used for accessing theexternal storage specified by StorageUri. When the external storage thatdoes not need the password is to be accessed, this information may beomitted.

FIG. 4D illustrates an exemplary list of access mode types to thestorage, used in type described above.

Referring to FIG. 4D, NFS denotes Network File System. NFS is defined inRequest For Comment (RFC) 1094, RFC 1813, RFC 3530, or the like and is adistributed file system and its protocol normally used in UNIX(registered trademark).

Referring to FIG. 4D, SMB is a widely used file sharing serviceprotocol.

Referring to FIG. 4D, CIFS denotes Common Internet File System. CIFSresults from extension of SMB and is a standard protocol used to accessa file system on a network.

Referring to FIG. 4D, CDMI denotes Cloud Data Management interface. CDMIis a standard protocol in provision of a storage cloud service.

Referring to FIG. 4D, SDCARD denotes an SD memory card. SDCARD is onetype of the internal storage medium 1007 in the monitoring camera 1000and is specified in the mounting of the internal storage medium.

Referring to FIG. 4D, AUTO is an option specified when the storage to bemounted is not specified by the client apparatus 2000. When SC havingtype of AUTO is specified, the monitoring camera 1000 selects anappropriate storage in accordance with a priority order or an algorithm,which is separately defined, and uses the selected storage.

FIG. 4E illustrates an example of the content of an SCOption structure.

Referring to FIG. 4E, type holds one of the access mode types describedabove with reference to FIG. 4D and indicates the access mode type ofthe storage which the monitoring camera 1000 is capable of mounting.

FIG. 5, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 illustrate commands concerning theembodiments of the present invention and responses to the commands indetail.

FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a GetSCs command in detail. Referringto FIG. 5, (1) illustrates the content of the GetSCs command transmittedfrom the client apparatus 2000 to the monitoring camera 1000. (2)illustrates the content of a GetSCs response returned from themonitoring camera 1000 to the client apparatus 2000. The clientapparatus 2000 is capable of acquiring the list of SCs held by themonitoring camera 1000 using the GetSCs command. In the example in FIG.5, the monitoring camera 1000 returns four kinds of SCs 5000 to 5003.

Reference 5000 denotes SC when StorageToken=storage1, type=AUTO. Whenthis SC is used, the monitoring camera 1000 selects the storage into andfrom which data is input and output.

Reference 5001 denotes SC when StorageToken=storage2, type=CIFS. Whenthis SC is used, the monitoring camera 1000 inputs and outputs data intoand from the external storage using the CIFS protocol identified by“//cifs_server/disk1/share/.”

Reference 5002 denotes SC when StorageToken=storage3, type=CDMI. Whenthis SC is used, the monitoring camera 1000 inputs and outputs data intoand from the cloud service storage using the CDMI protocol identified by“//cdmi:1024/service/export.”

Reference 5003 denotes SC when StorageToken=storage4, type=SDCARD. Whenthis SC is used, the monitoring camera 1000 inputs and outputs data intoand from the internal storage medium 1007, which is the SD cardidentified by “/dev/sdcard/1.”

FIG. 6 illustrates an example of a GetSCOptions command in detail.Referring to FIG. 6, (1) illustrates the content of the GetSCOptionscommand transmitted from the client apparatus 2000 to the monitoringcamera 1000. (2) illustrates the content of a GetSCOptions responsereturned from the monitoring camera 1000 to the client apparatus 2000.The client apparatus 2000 is capable of acquiring the list of accessmode types supported by the monitoring camera 1000 using theGetSCOptions command. In the example in FIG. 6, the monitoring camera1000 supports the access mode types: CIFS, CDMI, SDCARD, and AUTO.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a SetSC command in detail. Referring toFIG. 7, (1) illustrates the content of the SetSC command transmittedfrom the client apparatus 2000 to the monitoring camera 1000. (2)illustrates the content of a SetSC response returned from the monitoringcamera 1000 to the client apparatus 2000. The client apparatus 2000requests the monitoring camera 1000 to update the content of SC usingthe SetSC command. In the example in FIG. 7, the client apparatus 2000requests the monitoring camera 1000 to set type of SC whenStorageToken=storage1 to AUTO.

FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 illustrate typical exemplary commandsequences between the monitoring camera 1000 and the client apparatus2000.

FIG. 8 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence from connectionto setting of parameters between the monitoring camera 1000 and theclient apparatus 2000.

Referring to FIG. 8, Reference 6000 denotes a transaction to connect toa network device. The client apparatus 2000 unicasts or multicasts aProbe command for connection to the network device to the network. Themonitoring camera 1000 connected to the network returns a ProbeMatchresponse, which indicates that the monitoring camera 1000 is capable ofaccepting the command, to the client apparatus 2000.

Reference 6001 denotes a transaction of a Subscribe command. The clientapparatus 2000 instructs the monitoring camera 1000 to deliver an eventusing the Subscribe command.

Reference 6002 denotes a transaction of a GetServices command. Theclient apparatus 2000 transmits a GetServices request to the monitoringcamera 1000, which has returned ProbeMatch response, in order to acquirefunctions supported by the monitoring camera 1000. The monitoring camera1000 returns a GetServices response to provide a list of functionssupported by the monitoring camera 1000 to the client apparatus 2000.

Reference 6003 denotes a transaction of a GetProfiles command. Theclient apparatus 2000 acquires the list of MediaProfiles 3100 held bythe monitoring camera 1000 using the GetProfiles command.

Reference 6004 denotes a transaction of a GetVideoSources command. Theclient apparatus 2000 acquires the list of VideoSources 3110 held by themonitoring camera 1000 using the GetVideoSources command.

Reference 6005 denotes a transaction of a GetVSCs command. The clientapparatus 2000 acquires the list of the VSCs 3120 held by the monitoringcamera 1000 using the GetVSCs command.

Reference 6006 denotes a transaction of a GetVECs command. The clientapparatus 2000 acquires the list of VECs 3130 held by the monitoringcamera 1000 using the GetVECs command.

Reference 6007 denotes a transaction of a GetConfigurations command. Theclient apparatus 2000 acquires setting values concerning the imagingcontrol unit 1006, which is held by the monitoring camera 1000, usingthe GetConfigurations command.

Reference 6008 denotes a transaction of a GetVECOptions command. Theclient apparatus 2000 acquires a setting range and options of eachparameter of VEC which the monitoring camera 1000 is capable ofaccepting using the GetVECOptions command.

Reference 6009 denotes a transaction of a CreateProfile command. Theclient apparatus 2000 creates new MediaProfile in the monitoring camera1000 to acquire ProfileToken of the created MediaProfile usingCreateProfile command. After the CreateProfile command is processed, themonitoring camera 1000 transmits a MediaProfile change notificationevent in order to notify the client apparatus on the network that anychange has been made in MediaProfile.

References 6010 and 6011 denote transactions of an AddVSC command and anAddVEC command. The client apparatus 2000 is capable of associatingdesired VSC and VEC with the specified MediaProfile by specifying theIDs in the AddVSC command and the AddVEC command, respectively. Afterthe AddVSC command and the AddVEC command are processed, the monitoringcamera 1000 transmits the MediaProfile change notification event inorder to notify the client apparatus on the network that any change hasbeen made in MediaProfile.

Reference 6012 denotes a transaction of a SetVEC command. The clientapparatus 2000 changes each parameter of VEC on the basis of theinformation acquired in 6008 using the SetVEC command. After the SetVECcommand is processed, the monitoring camera 1000 transmits a VEC changenotification event in order to notify the client apparatus on thenetwork that any change has been made in VEC.

FIG. 9 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence of imagedelivery between the monitoring camera 1000 and the client apparatus2000.

Referring to FIG. 9, Reference 6020 denotes a transaction of aGetStreamUri command. The client apparatus 2000 acquires an address(URI) from which the monitoring camera 1000 acquires a delivery streamon the basis of the setting of the specified MediaProfile using theGetStreamUri command.

Reference 6021 denotes a transaction of a DESCRIBE command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests and acquires information about content streamedby the monitoring camera 1000 by executing the DESCRIBE command usingthe URI acquired in 6020.

Reference 6022 denotes a transaction of a SETUP command. The clientapparatus 2000 shares the streaming method including a session numberwith the monitoring camera 1000 by executing the SETUP command using theURI acquired in 6020.

Reference 6023 denotes a transaction of a PLAY command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to start thestreaming by executing the PLAY command using the session numberacquired in Step S6022.

Reference 6024 denotes a delivery stream. The monitoring camera 1000delivers the stream the start of which is requested in 6023 with thestreaming method shared in 6022.

Reference 6025 denotes a transaction of a TEARDOWN command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to stop the streamingby executing the TEARDOWN command using the session number acquired in6022.

FIG. 10 illustrates a typical exemplary command sequence concerningsetting of parameters related to storages and access to the storagesbetween the monitoring camera 1000 and the client apparatus 2000.

Referring to FIG. 10, Reference 6050 denotes a transaction of aGetServiceCapabilities command. The GetServiceCapabilities command isused to instruct the monitoring camera 1000 to return functioninformation indicating the functions supported by the monitoring camera1000. The function information includes information indicating whetherthe monitoring camera 1000 supports SC related commands. The functioninformation may also include information indicating the maximum numberof SCs which the monitoring camera 1000 is capable of holding.

Reference 6051 denotes a transaction of the GetSCs command describedabove with reference to FIG. 5.

Reference 6052 denotes a transaction of the GetSCOptions commanddescribed above with reference to FIG. 6.

Reference 6053 denotes a transaction of a CreateSCs command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to create new SCusing the CreateSCs command. The monitoring camera 1000 notifies theclient apparatus 2000 of StorageToken of the created new SC in theresponse to the CreateSCs command.

Reference 6054 denotes a transaction of a GetSC command. The clientapparatus 2000 acquires the content of the settings of specific SC heldby the monitoring camera 1000 by specifying StorageToken in the GetSCcommand.

Reference 6055 denotes a transaction of the SetSC command describedabove with reference to FIG. 7. The monitoring camera 1000 mounts thestorage specified in the SetSC command. The processing of the SetSCcommand will be described in detail below. After the SetSC command isprocessed, the monitoring camera 1000 transmits an SC changenotification event in order to notify the client apparatus on thenetwork that any change has been made in SC.

Reference 6056 denotes a transaction of a BackupSystem command. Theclient apparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to back upspecific data in a specific storage using the BackupSystem command. Themonitoring camera 1000, which has received the BackupSystem command,returns BackupToken when the monitoring camera 1000 returns aBackupSystem response to the client apparatus 2000. Then, the monitoringcamera 1000 transfers backup data to the specified storage. After thebackup is completed, the monitoring camera 1000 transmits a Backupcompletion event in order to notify the client apparatus on the networkthat the execution of the command is completed.

Reference 6057 denotes a transaction of a Restore command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to restore specificbackup data in the monitoring camera 1000 using the Restore command.With the Restore command, the client apparatus 2000 specifiesBackupToken acquired in the transaction in 6056. The monitoring camera1000, which has received the Restore command, acquires the backup dataassociated with BackupToken and StorageToken of the backup destinationwith reference to the storage unit 1002, reads out the backup data fromthe backup destination storage, and performs restoring. After therestoring is completed, the monitoring camera 1000 transmits a Restorecompletion event in order to notify the client apparatus on the networkthat the execution of the command is completed.

Reference 6058 denotes a transaction of an ExportVideos command. Theclient apparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to back upvideo data specified by the argument of the command in a specificstorage using the ExportVideos command. The monitoring camera 1000,which has received the ExportVideos command, returns an ExportVideosresponse to the client apparatus 2000. Then, the monitoring camera 1000transfers the video data to the specified storage. After the transfer iscompleted, the monitoring camera 1000 transmits an Export completionevent in order to notify the client apparatus on the network that theexecution of the command is completed.

Reference 6059 denotes a transaction of an Archive command. The clientapparatus 2000 requests the monitoring camera 1000 to compress and storedata specified by the argument of the command in a specific storageusing the Archive command. The monitoring camera 1000, which hasreceived the Archive command, returns an Archive response to the clientapparatus 2000. Then, the monitoring camera 1000 compresses thespecified data and transfers the compressed data to the specifiedstorage. After the transfer is completed, the monitoring camera 1000transmits an Archive completion event in order to notify the clientapparatus on the network that the execution of the command is completed.

Reference 6060 denotes a transaction of a RemoveSC command. Themonitoring camera 1000 unmounts a storage specified with the RemoveSCcommand. The monitoring camera 1000 unmounts the storage with referenceto SC identified by StorageToken specified by the argument. For example,processing similar to that of an unmount command in the UNIX (registeredtrademark) system is performed. After the Remove command is processed,the monitoring camera 1000 transmits the SC change notification event inorder to notify the client apparatus on the network that any change hasbeen made in SC.

FIG. 11, FIG. 12, and FIG. 13 are flowcharts illustrating exemplaryinternal processes of the monitoring camera 1000.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process of themonitoring camera 1000 when the SetSC command has been received.

Referring to FIG. 11, in Step S7000, the control unit 1001 stores thecontent of SC specified by the argument of the SetSC command in thestorage unit 1002 in association with StorageToken.

In Step S7001, the control unit 1001 determines Type of SC. If Type isCIFS, the process goes to Step S7002. If Type is CDMI, the process goesto Step S7003. If Type is SDCARD, the process goes to Step S7004. Typeis AUTO, the process goes to Step S7006.

In Step S7002, the control unit 1001 performs CIFS mounting.Specifically, the control unit 1001 performs the mounting using thevalue of LocalPath included in SC as a mount point in the storage unit1002 in the monitoring camera 1000 and using the value of StorageUri asa CIFS service address. Here, Username and Password included in SC areused as the authentication information. As a result, access to the NAS1100, which is a CIFS server, is performed. Then, the process goes toStep S7005.

In Step S7003, the control unit 1001 performs CDMI mounting.Specifically, the control unit 1001 performs the mounting using thevalue of LocalPath included in SC as the mount point in the storage unit1002 in the monitoring camera 1000 and using the value of StorageUri asthe address of the cloud storage service supporting CDMI. Here, Usernameand Password included in SC are used as the authentication information.As a result, access to the cloud storage 1200, which is a CDMI server,is performed. Then, the process goes to Step S7005.

In Step S7004, the control unit 1001 performs SDCARD mounting.Specifically, the control unit 1001 performs the mounting using thevalue of LocalPath included in SC as the mount point in the storage unit1002 in the monitoring camera 1000 and using the value of StorageUri asthe device file of the SD card in the monitoring camera 1000. As aresult, access to the internal storage medium 1007, that is, the SDcard, is performed. Then, the process goes to Step S7005.

In Step S7005, the control unit 1001 determines whether any error hasoccurred in the mounting in Step S7002, S7003, or S7004. It isconsidered that the error has occurred when StorageUri that does notexist is specified or when a wrong password is used. If any error hasoccurred, the process goes to Step S7007. If no error has occurred, theprocess goes to Step S7006.

In Step S7006, the control unit 1001 transmits a normal response to theclient apparatus 2000. Then, the process in FIG. 11 is terminated.

In Step S7007, the control unit 1001 transmits an error response to theclient apparatus 2000. Then, the process in FIG. 11 is terminated.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary process in themonitoring camera 1000 when the BackupSystem command, the ExportVideoscommand, or the Archive command has been received.

Referring to FIG. 12, in Step S7100, the control unit 1001 acquires Typeof SC associated with StorageToken specified in the argument of thecommand with reference to the storage unit 1002.

In Step S7101, the control unit 1001 determines whether Type is AUTO. IfType is AUTO, the process goes to Step S7110. If Type is not AUTO, theprocess goes to Step S7102.

In Step S7102, the control unit 1001 acquires LocalPath included in theselected SC.

In Step S7103, the control unit 1001 performs the processing of theBackupSystem command, the ExportVideos command, or the Archive commandfor LocalPath acquired in Step S7102.

When the received command is the BackupSystem command, the control unit1001 outputs certain system data in the storage unit 1002 to LocalPathacquired in Step S7102. The control unit 1001 generates BackupToken andstores the generated BackupToken in the storage unit 1002 in associationwith StorageToken of the transfer destination and the transfer data.BackupToken is used by the client apparatus 2000 in the Restore commanddescribed above. The monitoring camera 1000 uses BackupToken to uniquelyspecify the backup data to be restored. When the received command is theExportVideos command, the control unit 1001 outputs certain video datain the storage unit 1002 to LocalPath acquired in Step S7102. When thereceived command is the Archive command, the control unit 1001compresses certain data in the storage unit 1002 and outputs thecompressed data to LocalPath acquired in Step S7102. As the result ofStep S7103, the data is supplied to the external storage mounted in StepS7002, S7003, or S7004.

In Step S7104, the control unit 1001 performs a response transmissionstep. The control unit 1001 transmits the normal response to the clientapparatus 2000 via the communication unit 1005 in Step S7104. When thereceived command is an ExportSystem command, the control unit 1001transmits the normal response to the client apparatus 2000 along withBackupToken generated in Step S7103. Then, the process in FIG. 12 isterminated.

In Step S7110, the control unit 1001 performs a storage selection step.The storage selection step is described in detail below.

In Step S7111, the control unit 1001 determines whether any error hasoccurred in the storage selection step. If any error has occurred, theprocess goes to Step S7112. If no error has occurred, the control unit1001 uses SC output in the storage selection step as SC input in theprocessing of the corresponding command. In this case, the process goesto Step S7102.

In Step S7112, the control unit 1001 performs an error responsetransmission step. The control unit 1001 transmits the error response tothe client apparatus 2000 via the communication unit 1005 in Step S7112.Then, the process in FIG. 12 is terminated.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary behavior of the controlunit 1001 in the storage selection step in the process in FIG. 12.

Referring to FIG. 13, in Step S7200, the control unit 1001 determineswhether any mounted storage exits with reference to the storage unit1002. If no mounted storage exits, the process goes to Step S7210. Ifany mounted storage exists, the process goes to Step S7201.

In Step S7201, the control unit 1001 acquires information about themounted storages with reference to the storage unit 1002. Then, thecontrol unit 1001 selects the storage having the highest priority, amongthe mounted storages, on the basis of a pre-determined access mode typepriority order. The access mode type priority order will be described indetail below.

In Step S7202, the control unit 1001 outputs StorageToken of the storageselected in Step S7201. Then, the storage selection step is terminated.

In Step S7210, the control unit 1001 outputs an error. Then, the storageselection step is terminated.

The access mode type priority order is capable of being implemented invarious modes.

FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B are tables illustrating exemplary informationconcerning the access mode type priority order.

FIG. 14A illustrates an example of the access mode type priority order.In the example in FIG. 14A, the priority order is determined on thebasis of StorageType for each received command. For example, when thereceived command is the BackupSystem command, in Step S7201, the mountedstorages are selected on the basis of the priority order of StorageType:the storage having StorageType of SDCARD is first selected, the storagehaving StorageType of CDMI is next selected, and the storage havingStorageType of CIFS is finally selected.

FIG. 14B illustrates another example of the access mode type priorityorder. In the example in FIG. 14B, the priority order is determined onthe basis of StorageToken for each received command. For example, whenthe received command is the ExportVideos command, in Step S7201, themounted storages are selected on the basis of the priority order ofStorageToken: the storage having StorageToken of Storage2 is firstselected, the storage having StorageToken Storage3 is next selected, andthe storage having StorageToken of Storage1 is finally selected.

As another example of the access mode type priority order, priority maybe given to the internal storage media 1007, such as the SD card or theUSB drive, or to the external storages including the NAS 1100 and thecloud storage 1200 for each received command.

The access mode type priority order described above may be held in thestorage unit 1002 in the monitoring camera 1000 in advance.Alternatively, a command to set the access mode type priority order maybe supported and the access mode type priority order may be set by theclient apparatus 2000 using the command.

Alternatively, the access mode type priority order may be dynamicallydetermined on the basis of the free space of each storage. In StepS7201, for example, the control unit 1001 may acquire the free space ofeach mounted storage by executing a command corresponding to df in aLinux (registered trademark) system and higher priority may be given tothe storages having larger free spaces. This allows control in which thefree space of each storage is ensured as much as possible.

FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplary Storage Operation screen. The StorageOperation screen is a user interface in the client apparatus 2000, whichis used to change the settings of the storages in the monitoring camera1000 and operate access to the storages.

FIG. 16, FIG. 17, FIG. 18, and FIG. 19 are flowcharts illustrating anexemplary behavior of the client apparatus 2000 concerning the StorageOperation screen.

Referring to FIG. 15, Reference 8000 denotes an Operation selectiondropdown list used to select an operation concerning the storage. A listof storage operation commands supported by the monitoring camera 1000 isdisplayed in the Operation selection dropdown list 8000 in accordancewith the result of the transaction 6050 of the GetServiceCapabilitiescommand. The storage operation commands are commands typified byBackupSystem, Restore, ExportVideos, and Archive. Mount and Unmountcommands are displayed in the Operation selection dropdown list 8000, inaddition to the storage operation commands. With the Mount command, thetransaction 6055 of the SetSC command to mount the selected storage isperformed. With the Unmount command, the transaction 6060 of theRemoveSC command to unmount the selected storage is performed.

Reference 8001 denotes an Operation Target ID selection dropdown list. Alist of IDs of the storages for which the command selected in theOperation selection dropdown list 8000 is to be executed is displayed inthe Operation Target ID selection dropdown list 8001. The commandselected in the Operation selection dropdown list 8000 is executed forthe ID selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdown list 8001.

Reference 8002 denotes a Storage type selection-display area. Reference8003 denotes a Local Path specification-display area. Reference 8004denotes a Storage Uri specification-display area. Reference 8005 denotesa Username specification-display area. Reference 8006 denotes a Passwordspecification-display area. When StorageToken is selected in theOperation Target ID selection dropdown list 8001, the content of thesettings of SC identified by the selected StorageToken is displayed inthe storage type selection-display area 8002 to the Passwordspecification-display area 8006. When “New” is selected in the OperationTarget ID selection dropdown list 8001, a new storage is mounted usinginformation input by the user in the storage type selection-display area8002 to the Password specification-display area 8006 before the storageoperation command specified in the Operation selection dropdown list8000 is executed.

Reference 8007 denotes a Target Data selection area into which data tobe transferred to the storage with the storage operation command isinput.

Reference 8008 denotes an Invoke button. The command selected in theOperation selection dropdown list 8000 is executed upon depression ofthe Invoke button 8008.

Reference 8009 denotes a Cancel button. The StorageOperation screen isclosed upon depression of the Cancel button 8009.

FIG. 16, FIG. 17, FIG. 18, and FIG. 19 are flowcharts illustrating anexemplary process concerning the Storage Operation screen, performed bythe control unit 2001.

Referring to FIG. 16, in Step S9000, the control unit 2001 causes thedisplay unit 2003 to display the entire Storage Operation screendescribed above with reference to FIG. 15.

In Step S9001, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6050 todisplay the commands supported by the target monitoring camera 1000 inthe Operation selection dropdown list 8000.

In Step S9002, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6052 todisplay StorageTypes supported by the target monitoring camera 1000 inthe storage type selection-display area 8002.

In Step S9003, the control unit 2001 causes the display unit 2003 todisplay the LocalPath specification-display area 8003, the StorageUrispecification-display area 8004, the Username specification-display area8005, and the Password specification-display area 8006. In addition, thecontrol unit 2001 causes the display unit 2003 to display the targetdata selection area 8007, the invoke button 8008, and the Cancel button8009.

In Step S9004, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6051 todisplay the StorageToken list acquired from the monitoring camera 1000and the “new” option in the Operation Target ID selection dropdown list8001.

In Step S9005, the control unit 2001 waits for a user's operation eventfrom the input unit 2004 and an event reception event from the decodingunit 2005. If an option other than the Restore command is selected inthe Operation selection dropdown list 8000, the process goes back toStep S9004. If the Restore command is selected in the Operationselection dropdown list 8000, the process goes to Step S9006. If anyStorageToken is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001, the process goes to Step S9010. If the Invoke button 8008 isdepressed in a state in which the BackupSystem command, the ExportVideoscommand, or the Archive command is selected in the Operation selectiondropdown list 8000, the process goes to Step S9020. If the Invoke button8008 is depressed in a state in which the Mount command is selected inthe Operation selection dropdown list 8000, the process goes to StepS9030. If the Invoke button 8008 is depressed in a state in which theUnmount command is selected in the Operation selection dropdown list8000, the process goes to Step S9040.

In Step S9006, the control unit 2001 acquires BackupToken acquired inthe execution of the transaction 6056 from the storage unit 2002 anddisplays the acquired BackupToken in the Operation Target selectiondropdown list 8001. Then, the process goes back to Step S9004.

In Step S9010, the control unit 2001 displays the content of SC acquiredin the execution of the transaction 6054 in the storage typeselection-display area 8002 to the target data selection area 8007.Then, the process goes back to Step S9004.

Referring to FIG. 17, in Step S9020, the control unit 2001 determineswhether “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001. If “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selectiondropdown list 8001, the process goes to Step S9021. If an option otherthan “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001, the process goes to Step S9022.

In Step S9021, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6053 tocreate new SC and acquires StorageToken. Then, the process goes to StepS9023.

In Step S9022, the control unit 2001 acquires StorageToken selected inthe Operation Target ID selection dropdown list 8001. Then, the processgoes to Step S9024.

In Step S9023, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6055 usingStorageToken acquired in Step S9021 and the information input by theuser in the storage type selection-display area 8002 to the Passwordspecification-display area 8006. When AUTO is selected in the storagetype selection-display area 8002, the information in the LocalPathspecification-display area 8003 to the Password specification-displayarea 8006 is not used.

In Step S9024, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6056,6058, or 6059 in accordance with the content selected in the Operationselection dropdown list 8000 for StorageToken acquired in Step S9021 orStep S9022.

In Step S9025, the control unit 2001 stores BackupToken returned fromthe monitoring camera 1000 in the storage unit 2002 when the transaction6056 has been performed in Step S9024.

In Step S9026, the control unit 2001 waits for reception of an executioncompletion event of each command. If the execution completion event ofthe command has been received, the process goes back to Step S9004.

Referring to FIG. 18, in Step S9030, the control unit 2001 determineswhether “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001. If “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selectiondropdown list 8001, the process goes to Step S9031. If an option otherthan “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001, the process goes back to Step S9004.

In Step S9031, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6053 tocreate new SC and acquires StorageToken.

In Step S9032, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6055 forStorageToken acquired in Step S9031.

In Step S9033, the control unit 2001 waits for reception of theexecution completion event of each command. If the execution completionevent of the command has been received, the process goes back to StepS9004.

Referring to FIG. 19, in Step S9040, the control unit 2001 determineswhether “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001. If “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selectiondropdown list 8001, the process goes to Step S9041. If an option otherthan “New” is selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdownlist 8001, the process goes back to Step S9004.

In Step S9041, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction 6060 forStorageToken selected in the Operation Target ID selection dropdown list8001.

In Step S9042, the control unit 2001 waits for reception of theexecution completion event of each command. If the execution completionevent of the command has been received, the process goes back to StepS9004.

As described above, according to the first embodiment, the imagingapparatus capable of transmitting and receiving data to and frommultiple storages mounted on a network is provided. The imagingapparatus includes a first interface that receives detailed informationnecessary for mounting the storages and an instruction to mount aspecific storage and a second interface that receives an instruction tomount an arbitrary storage with at least part of the detailedinformation used for mounting the storages being omitted.

In addition, according to the first embodiment, when the clientapparatus causes the imaging apparatus to mount an external networkstorage, the user of the imaging apparatus may not necessarily input avariety of information concerning the mounting. It is possible for auser other than the manager to easily use the external storage.

Second Embodiment

The monitoring camera that provides AUTO as an option of the storagetype is exemplified in the first embodiment.

If the storage having type of AUTO is specified with the detailedinformation about the storage being omitted, the monitoring camera 1000of the first embodiment determines whether any mounted storage existsand, if no mounted storage exists, outputs an error. In other words, itis necessary for any external storage to be mounted in advance as aprecondition of the use of type of AUTO. However, any external storagemay not be mounted in advance.

If no mounted storage exists, any storage may be automatically mountedin the storage selection step to make the storage available withoutusing the precondition in the first embodiment.

A file in the storage unit 1002 in the monitoring camera 1000 may beused as a storage, instead of the external storage.

A second embodiment of the present invention will now be described inconsideration of the above points. A detailed description of portionscommon to the first embodiment is omitted herein.

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary configuration of an imaging systemincluding the monitoring camera 1000, which is an imaging apparatus, andthe client apparatus 2000 in the second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B are block diagrams illustrating exemplary internalconfigurations of the monitoring camera 1000 and the client apparatus2000, respectively.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary structure of parameters held by themonitoring camera 1000 in the second embodiment.

FIG. 4A to FIG. 4E illustrate command arguments and parameterstransmitted and received between the monitoring camera 1000 and theclient apparatus 2000 in detail.

FIG. 5, FIG. 6, and FIG. 7 illustrate commands concerning theembodiments of the present invention and responses to the commands indetail.

FIG. 8, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 illustrate typical exemplary commandsequences between the monitoring camera 1000 and the client apparatus2000.

FIG. 11, FIG. 12, and FIG. 13 are flowcharts illustrating exemplaryinternal processes of the monitoring camera 1000.

FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B are tables illustrating exemplary informationconcerning the access mode type priority order.

FIG. 15 illustrates a user interface in the client apparatus 2000, whichis used to change the settings of the storages in the monitoring camera1000 and operate access to the storages.

FIG. 16, FIG. 17, FIG. 18, and FIG. 19 are flowcharts illustrating anexemplary process concerning the Storage Operation screen, performed bythe control unit 2001.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary behavior of the controlunit 1001 in the storage selection step in the process in FIG. 12.

In Step S7200 in FIG. 13, the control unit 1001 determines whether anymounted storage exits with reference to the storage unit 1002. If nomounted storage exits, the control unit 1001 acquiresRecordingInformation 3150 with reference to the storage unit 1002. Thecontrol unit 1001 outputs RecordingToken included in the acquiredRecordingInformation as the storage selected in the storage selectionstep.

In Step S7102 in FIG. 12, if the selected storage is Recording, thecontrol unit 1001 acquires a file path in the storage unit 1002abstracted with Recording.

In Step S7103, the control unit 1001 performs the processing of theBackupSystem command, the ExportVideos command, or the Archive commandfor the file path acquired in Step S7102. As a result, the storageoperation command is executed for the file stored in the storage unit1002, that is, Recording.

Also in the client apparatus 2000, RecordingToken may be set as thetarget of the storage operation command.

In Step S9004 in FIG. 16, the control unit 2001 performs the transaction6051 to display the StorageToken list acquired from the monitoringcamera 1000. In addition, the control unit 2001 executes a GetRecordingscommand to acquire a Recording list held by the target monitoring camera1000. The control unit 2001 displays the acquired StorageToken, theacquired RecordingToken, and the “new” option in the Operation Target IDselection dropdown list 8001.

According to the second embodiment described above, the user of theimaging apparatus may not necessarily input a variety of informationconcerning the mounting even when the client apparatus causes theimaging apparatus to mount an external network storage in a situation inwhich the external storage is not mounted in the imaging apparatus. Itis possible for a user other than the manager to easily use the externalstorage.

In addition, using a file, that is, Recording existing in the storageunit in the imaging apparatus as the target of the storage operationcommand allows the storage operation command to be easily used even in asituation in which access to all external storages is disabled.

The embodiments of the present invention are realized by performing thefollowing process. Specifically, software (program) realizing thefunctions in the above embodiments is supplied to a system or anapparatus via a network or various storage media and a computer (or aCPU or a micro processing unit (MPU)) in the system or the apparatusreads out the program and executes the program.

While the invention is described in terms of some specific examples andembodiments, it will be clear that this invention is not limited tothese specific examples and embodiments and that many changes andmodified embodiments will be obvious to those skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the true spirit and scope of the invention.

For example, the following modifications may be made:

1) Although the mounting is not performed if Type is AUTO in the processwhen the SetSC command has been received in FIG. 11, the process in FIG.11 is not limited to this. If no storage is mounted, an accessiblestorage set in advance may be automatically mounted at this time and thestorage may be used in SC.

2) Although typical six types of StorageType are listed in FIG. 4D, thetypes of StorageType are not limited to the ones illustrated in FIG. 4D.The types of StorageType may include, for example, File TransferProtocol (FTP). The types of StorageType may include various mountablestorage types including a USB drive and a Blu-ray disc recordable drive(BD-R drive) as the internal storage media.

3) The video data to be exported may be specified by the clientapparatus 2000 in the transaction 6058 of the ExportVideos command withvarious methods. For example, ProfileToken identifying MediaProfile 3100held by the monitoring camera 1000 may be specified and the video datato be streamed in accordance with the content of the setting ofMediaProfile may be specified as the export target. Alternatively, therecording file that is identified by RecordingToken inRecordingInformation 3150 and that is held by the monitoring camera 1000may be specified as the export target.

4) Although the monitoring camera 1000 compresses the data in thetransaction 6059 of the Archive command, the data may be compressed atthe storage side.

As described above, according to the embodiments of the presentinvention, the user of the imaging apparatus may not necessarily input avariety of information concerning the mounting when the client apparatuscauses the imaging apparatus to mount an external network storage. It ispossible for a user other than the manager to easily use the externalnetwork storage.

Other Embodiments

Embodiments of the present invention can also be realized by a computerof a system or apparatus that reads out and executes computer executableinstructions recorded on a storage medium (e.g., non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium) to perform the functions of one ormore of the above-described embodiment(s) of the present invention, andby a method performed by the computer of the system or apparatus by, forexample, reading out and executing the computer executable instructionsfrom the storage medium to perform the functions of one or more of theabove-described embodiment(s). The computer may comprise one or more ofa central processing unit (CPU), micro processing unit (MPU), or othercircuitry, and may include a network of separate computers or separatecomputer processors. The computer executable instructions may beprovided to the computer, for example, from a network or the storagemedium. The storage medium may include, for example, one or more of ahard disk, a random-access memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), astorage of distributed computing systems, an optical disk (such as acompact disc (CD), digital versatile disc (DVD), or Blu-ray Disc (BD)™),a flash memory device, a memory card, and the like.

While the present ion has been described with reference to exemplaryembodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited tothe disclosed exemplary embodiments. The scope of the following claimsis to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass allsuch modifications and equivalent structures and functions.

This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application No.2014-054184, filed Mar. 17, 2014, which is hereby incorporated byreference herein in its entirety.

1. An imaging apparatus capable of transmitting and receiving data toand from a plurality of storages mounted on a network, the imagingapparatus comprising: a first interface configured to receive detailedinformation necessary for mounting the storages and an instruction tomount a specific storage; and a second interface configured to receivean instruction to mount an arbitrary storage with at least part of thedetailed information necessary for mounting the storages being omitted.2. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: athird interface configured to receive an instruction to starttransmission and reception of data, wherein the third interface includesinformation for determining whether the storage is mounted through thefirst interface or the second storage.
 3. The imaging apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein, when data is transmitted and received toand from the storage based on the instruction through the secondinterface, the data is transmitted and received to and from the storageselected on the basis of a predetermined priority order, among thestorages mounted in advance.
 4. The imaging apparatus according to claim1, wherein, if no mounted storage exists when data is transmitted andreceived to and from the storage based on the instruction through thesecond interface, a predetermined storage is mounted and the data istransmitted and received to and from the mounted predetermined storage.5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the predeterminedstorage is a file stored in the imaging apparatus.
 6. The imagingapparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first interface is capableof specifying a file stored in the imaging apparatus as a mount target.7. A method of controlling an imaging apparatus capable of transmittingand receiving data to and from a plurality of storages mounted on anetwork, the imaging apparatus comprising: a first interface configuredto receive detailed information necessary for mounting the storages andan instruction to mount a specific storage; and a second interfaceconfigured to receive an instruction to mount an arbitrary storage withat least part of the detailed information necessary for mounting thestorages being omitted.